Sérgio da Rocha was born in Dobrada, in the state of São Paulo, on 21 October 1959. He studied philosophy at the diocesan seminary of São Carlos and theology at the Theological Institute of Campinas, earned a licentiate in moral theology at the Nossa Senhora da Assunção Theological Faculty in São Paulo, and took a doctorate in the same discipline at the Alphonsian Academy in Rome. He was ordained a priest on 14 December 1984 in Matão, in the Diocese of São Carlos. His early ministry combined parish work with youth and vocations ministry; he later served as rector of the diocesan seminaries and professor of moral theology at the Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas.
On 13 June 2001 he was appointed titular Bishop of Alba and Auxiliary Bishop of Fortaleza, and he received episcopal consecration on 11 August 2001. He was appointed coadjutor Archbishop of Teresina on 31 January 2007 and succeeded as Archbishop on 3 September 2008. On 15 June 2011 Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Metropolitan Archbishop of Brasília, where he erected new parishes and reorganised the seminary and archdiocesan leadership. In April 2015 he was elected president of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB), and he also led the Vocations and Ministries department of CELAM, the Latin American bishops' council.
Pope Francis created him a cardinal in the consistory of 19 November 2016, assigning him the titular church of Santa Croce in via Flaminia, and in November 2017 named him relator general of the 2018 Synod of Bishops on young people, faith and vocational discernment. On 11 March 2020 Francis transferred him to São Salvador da Bahia, the primatial see of Brazil. On 7 March 2023 the Pope appointed him to the Council of Cardinals. He is a member of the Dicastery for Bishops, the Dicastery for the Clergy and the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. He participated as a cardinal elector in the 2025 conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV.
Consequential Quotes
Often we hear voices that blame young people for moving away from the Church. But many of them have lived in situations that lead them to affirm that it was the Church that moved away from them
We cannot think our offer of accompaniment in discernment will be credible for the young people to whom it is directed if we cannot show ourselves capable of practicing discernment in the ordinary life of the church, making it our communal style more than an operating method
In this moment of great and sudden changes, we cannot presume to know the world of young people without first having dealt with truly existing young people
It is a grave sin to use the name of God or any religion to practice or justify violence
Do not share offensive and disrespectful content. Do not join WhatsApp groups or other social networks that spread gossip, moral lynchings and destructive criticism, even if these are Catholics or people of the Church
Violence against the LGBTI+ population is a sad signal of a society which is used to constant violations of life, of dignity, of the rights of so many victims of brutal death
Major Works & Initiatives
Metropolitan Archbishop of Brasília
Appointed by Benedict XVI on 15 June 2011; in Brasília he erected 11 new parishes, created plans for supporting the homeless and young people, and reorganized the seminary and archdiocesan leadership.
President of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB)
Elected on 20 April 2015 to a four-year term as president of the Brazilian bishops' conference, in which he had previously served on the doctrine commission and the task force to overcome poverty and hunger.
Relator general of the Synod on Young People
Appointed by Pope Francis in November 2017 as relator general of the XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, 'Young people, faith and vocational discernment' (October 2018), presenting the assembly's work and overseeing its final document.
Member of the Council of Cardinals
Appointed by Pope Francis on 7 March 2023 to the renewed Council of Cardinals advising the Pope on the government of the universal Church; also a member of the Dicastery for Bishops, the Dicastery for the Clergy and the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
Controversies
Mass for victims of anti-LGBT violence (2021)
On 21 May 2021, at the request of local LGBT rights organisations, da Rocha celebrated a Mass in Salvador for murdered members of the LGBT community and preached against violence directed at them. LGBT Catholic groups in Brazil welcomed the Mass as a significant gesture by the country's primate; Crux reported that the celebration was criticised by traditionalist Catholics, and the College of Cardinals Report records critics calling it a political act against the doctrine of the Church and questioning whether the victims were killed because of their orientation. Da Rocha and the organising priest framed the Mass in terms of the Church's opposition to violence and its duty to pray for the dead.
Sources
- Holy See Press Office — biography
- Wikipedia
- Catholic News Service via Herald Malaysia, 5 October 2018
- Catholic News Service via The Central Minnesota Catholic, 3 October 2018
- Agenzia Fides, 27 February 2018
- Crux, 11 June 2021 (via New Ways Ministry summary, 15 June 2021)
- The College of Cardinals Report — Sérgio da Rocha